Cat 475 vs 550 vs 625

Sounds about right. Both mine are in that range pulling 60k-ish. 06 FL classic flat top, 550 factory tune, 18sp, 3.90/24.5's, avg about 4.3-4.8 imp, and the current truck is an 05 Star with the 625 detuned to a 550 program right now for the break in (I didn't build or tune it, that's how we bought the truck over the winter, and we just put it on the road about a month ago after it had sat for almost 4 years - she's pulling good now, but still blowing a lot of smoke out the breather tube, and out the pipes if it's been idled up for any length of time), same trans/gears/tires and loads as the classic, and right now I'm avg 3.7-3.9/ us gallon according to the dash display

 

Just so you know, if it was a true 625 with the 625 cam and injectors your making closer to 725 with that 550 program in it..the reason. Being is the 625 OR3261 larger injectors and the cam has a more aggressive injector lobe than the 435-550 motors...add 71/-20,18/11, or 127/0 fls and fts numbers and add a 550hp/1850tq Brake Saver program for another 75-100hp. The 625 cam actually works as good or better than the 800 marine cam and are compatible with the smaller, higher pop off psi injectors without any worries of getting the high RPM flutter that the 800 cam sometimes causes with 57's or 58 injectors. Also the 625 cam can be used in acerts or any of the 3406e-c15 with 40 or 70 pin ecms..it's only recommended the 800 cam be used with 211-3025, 211-3026, 211-3027, or 211-3028's. These injectors are only only uses in industrial c15's, c16's, and C18 motors. Also the we're used in select 3406E/3456 40 pin motors.

 

So my Boss has decided to let me build the engine to the 625 spec, he ordered the lower compression overhaul kit instead of the 550 kit, so I guess I'm going big, lol.
Just wanting to confirm that the OR3261/249-0702 injectors and the 3327313 camshaft are what I want and will not give me any issues before I send Boss to order them (provided he doesn't have a heart attack when he sees the pricing, lol)...??
Also, do I need to change anything in the 550 tune for it to work with the 625 spec longblock, or are there any features that I should or shouldn't turn off once it's back together (as in emissions/torque limiting/boost management/etc)? Anything special I might need to change in the tune for the break-in? Should I have them dial the ECM back to 475 or 500 or anything, or is it OK to break in the engine with the full 550hp factory tune?

 

Thanks C-man, good to know, it's definitely NOT making 725hp, it won't even keep up with my 550 in the Freightliner now that the boss finally had the broken injector changed and it's running properly.
Sounds like that's about to change tho, he's gone and ordered the lower compression reman kit for the truck, so it looks like I'm building up.
So that said, without needing to shoot for 800+ (this truck doesn't have the driveline for that kind of torque, I'd be breaking stuff all the time, we do too much off-road and soft ground to get away with that much power), is there anything I might need to turn off or on in the 550 tune to run safely? I'm thinking of keeping the IVA's active, just for safety's sake, since I'm still running the 550 program and not the proper 625, but I hate having to deal with the torque limiting and boost vs fuel restrictions the factory settings use, I know these engines can be downright snappy, but with this truck I'm always waiting forever for the boost to come up because of the boost monitoring settings. Without having to build a custom tune, I'm wondering what I can tell our computer guy to turn off or on and not make issues for myself down the road, and I'm wondering if the "brakesaver" setup is something we can do right from Cat-ET or is it a custom tune? I'm assuming with the 625 cam and injectors it should respond a lot better, but this will be a combination I'm not familiar with, I never drove the 625 Pete loaded, just the once bobtailing, and from the phone call I just had with the dealership, I'm finding out that it wasn't a true 625 factory truck, the VIN came back as originally 475 in their computer system, so I am not apparently as familiar with the performance of the 625 as I thought I was, lol
Basically any tips or tricks or hints are very helpful at this point, I don't want to have to do a 3rd rebuild in the next few months because we changed something we shouldn't have...

 

Any update on the truck build ? Wanting to do the same, overhaul with the 625.

 

Sorry guys, haven't been on in a while, didn't see this last response.
unfortunately, nothing positive. The engine has been rebuilt 3 times now since we got the truck, and the last time it went back to the same guys (yet again), they messed with the ECU tune file and it hasn't run right since. I think we finally got the build somehwat right, as it's not going thru coolant like crazy like it was (blowing it out the resevior cap and into the gallon jug overflow I hung at the end of the breather hose), but they put a 475 IVA delete program in it that blocked out most of the normal error codes, so I have no way to tell what is going on in the engine that's causing the new issues. Latest is that after the last build and the new file (engine guy being lazy and putting a suppopsed IVA delete program in it instead of actually diagnosing the IVA code and fixing the problems - we eventually changed the whole harness, inside and out, and it seemed to fix the IVA issue, but I haven't been able to get them to put the stock program back in it to see if it would run right), I was only getting 32-34lbs peak boost (and only on a long pull), and it was still underpowered, but sorta liveable as long as you didn't have to pull hard. Most recent is that boost has dropped to under 30lbs peak, and I can't get it over that to save it's life. I made a comment in an old thread about the IVA system and something our new in house mechanin told me that could have some bearing on the situation, I'll post it here too, maybe you guys can help me out:
Apparently the engine guy (still the same one from before, unfortunately) had taken to pulling the oil supply line between the filter housing and the IVA oil rail out and plugging both ends. from what I understand about the design of the IVA actuator system, that means that the actuator never pressures up and the intake valve never sees full open...? am I right about this? apparently he's done it to several of our engines, and from the little I've driven them, only one still seems to be making close to normal power, and it's one that hadn't been deleted yet (it still get's the IVA code and derate after 8 seconds above 70% throttle, same as the Freightliner used to get before the fixes). But as long as you can keep it out of that error code and derate, it pulls like a 550 Cat should.

So my new question is what is that lack of oil and pressure going to do to the engine? Am I right that the actuator is no longer opening the valve fully and the engine is mechanically derated? Or should I be looking for something else?
And if anyone knows how or where the engine guy might have gotten the idea that this is somehow good for the engine...?
Any help or advice is welcome. Right now I'm looking for any advice or evidence the mechaninc and I can take to the Boss to convince him that the engine guy is wrong or doesn't know what he's doing, or advice as to how to undo the damage he's doing to these engines. We still have 4 or 5 C15's in the fleet, and he's messed up all of them in one way or another, but unfortunately he's good friends with the Boss, so unless I can show hard evidence (and plenty of it), I'm going to have a hard time convincing the Boss to go against his word.

 

Too bad we used to have 1/2 dozen guys that knew this stuff but they have all disappeared

one thing I know is no iva delete without changing pistons to lower the compression…….

 

That's unfortunate. Yah, I haven't recieved a response in the other conversation either